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Western Kentucky UniversityTopSCHOLAR®
Counseling & Student Affairs Faculty Publications Counseling and Student Affairs
2-1-2000
Application of the Deming philosophy to highereducationAaron W. HugheyWestern Kentucky University, [email protected]
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Recommended Repository CitationHughey, Aaron W.. (2000). Application of the Deming philosophy to higher education. Industry and Higher Education, 14 (1), 40-44.Original Publication URL: www.ippublishing.comAvailable at: http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/csa_fac_pub/2
Application of theDeming philosophyto higher educationAaron W. Hughey
A brief overview of the historical significance of the work of W EdwardsDeming, one of the originators of Total Ouality Management (TOM), isprovided. The essence of the Deming philosophy is that quality must bethe pre-eminent consideration in any strategy aimed at long-termsuccess. Within this context, the idea of what constitutes true quality inhigher education is discussed followed by an explanation of how Deming'sfamous '14 points' are as applicable to colleges and universities as theyare to business and industry. The author then explains how the '14 points'can be used as a framework for ensuring quality, customer satisfactionand greater accountability within the collegiate environment.
The author is Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership,TPH 417-0, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, KY 42101, USA.Tel: +12707454849. Fax:+1 270 7455445. E-mail: [email protected]
W. Edwards Deming, one of the originators of TotalQuality Management (TQM), pioneered some of theworld's most useful and innovative strategies forenhancing quality and productivity. I Initially ignored byAmerican management, Deming's ideas are currentlysynonymous with sustained profitability and long-termsuccess in the private sector. Furthermore, hisuncompromising stance on the key issue ofaccountability serves as a cornerstone for organizationalviability.
Higher education has also been significantly affectedby the management revolution taking place in the privatesector. Evidence of how Deming has influenced theacademic world can be found in the push toward greateraccountability at all levels of the educational hierarchy.More than just an attempt to ensure consistency withinand between similar programmes, many of the changesthat have occurred within our educational systems overthe last couple of decades have been motivated by thedesire to maximize the quality potential for both theinstitution and, ultimately, its graduates.
But what does it really mean when we say that aparticular institution provides a quality educationalexperience for its students? Does this refer to some
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philosophical dimension that relates to enhancedawareness and a higher level of functioning? Or does itmean that the institution's graduates seem to do wellonce they leave the institution - in other words, do theyreceivejobs in their majors? Or does it simply implythat the overhead projectors work, the professors tend toshow up for class, and the library has more than threejournal subscriptions?
Competition and customer satisfaction
Perhaps.a brief look at history would be appropriate.After the Second World War,American manufacturingconcerns shifted toward an emphasis on quantity ratherthan quality. Deming, acting on behalf of the USgovernment, went to Japan and introduced businessleaders there to his management concepts. The Japaneseimmediately recognized the inherent value of hisemphasis on employee involvement and the need toimprove processes continually.As a result, the modemeconomic era has been characterized, to a significantextent, by the Japanese and their strict allegiance toTQM. Unfortunately, it took somewhat longer for theDeming philosophy to be validated on his native soil.
INDUSTRY & HIGHER EDUCATION February 2000
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By 1980, international competition was beginning tohave a significant impact on the US economy. Manydomestic finns found themselves in trouble.
Unemployment had increased steadily during the 1970s,causing a noticeable impact on practically everyone'squality of life. Deming was inadvertently rediscoveredwhile companies searched desperately for a solution totheir dilemma. Consequently, an entirely newgeneration of managers has been introduced to Demingand TQM. In order to achieve ultimate success, Demingargued, everyone involved in an organization must berigorously focused on satisfying the customer throughthe never-ending provision of goods and services of thehighest possible quality at the lowest possible cost.There is simply no other way.
And whereas competition has been a fact of life inthe business arena since time immemorial, manycolleges and universities, especially public institutions,are just beginning to feel its full effects. History hasdemonstrated repeatedly that if consumers find that theirneeds can be met with a higher degree of service and/orat lower expense, then they will inevitably change to analternative provider. This is the basic principle of supplyand demand. Higher education is reluctantly coming tothe realization that it, too, is subject to the fundamentallaws of economics. In truth, academia has always beenmuch more dependent on its students than it has beenwilling to admit. In the new millennium, the perpetualenhancement of customer satisfaction will constitute the
primary consideration in every decision made. Theability to make this paradigm shift successfully isessential to the survival of higher education.
'Quality' in higher education
Within an educational context, 'quality' tends to bedefined from one end of the spectrum to the other. As aresult, there is very little chance that two people whohappen to be discussing the subject are really evenspeaking the same language. But a precise and shareddefinition of quality is needed before meaningfulprogress can be made toward its realization in highereducation. How quality is defined ultimately determinesthe goals, methods, and priorities in pursuing it. It allcomes down to that old Zen proverb that it is impossibleto take aim without a target.
An institution's relative position in the pedagogicalpecking order is often determined by tradition, testscores, admissions rates, library holdings, publicationrecords, placement rates, and distinguished alumni. Inrecent years, endowment size, development initiatives,external funding and other economic considerationshave also been used to gauge efficacy. In the minds ofmany influential political and educational leaders,
INDUSTRY & HIGHER EDUCATION February 2000
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Application of the Deming philosophy to higher education
'quality' is measured almost exclusively within amaterialistic context. Whoever has the most must be thebest.
Arguably, however, true quality is more closelyrelated to intangibles such as undergraduate advisingand instruction, student services delivery systems, andpersonal involvement in the educational process. For themost part, students are not overly concerned withwhether or not the school they attend has substantialexternal funding and/or a few Nobel Prize winners onthe faculty. They simply want to be treated fairly andprovided with a solid foundation on which to build afulfilling life and career. Indeed, having administrators,faculty, and staff who share a common commitment tothe general welfare of the students they serve goes along way toward ensuring quality.
With respect to academic programmes, it has beencustomary to define quality in tenns of rigorousadherence to a set of predetermined standards; ieaccreditation. But consider the notion that true qualitymay not hold every individual or institution to the sameyardstick. Although standards have their place, qualityalso implies the ability to respond flexibly to theparticular needs of each individual student. It takes intoaccount students' strengths and weaknesses in relationto their equcational and career aspirations.
The bottom line is that having millions of dollars inexternal funding does not insure high quality - nor doeshaving a distinguished faculty, a student populationsaturated with outstanding scholars, or a highlyrespected reputation. The relative quality of theeducation received at a given institution is largely afunction of the commitment exhibited by theadministration, faculty, and staff employed there -which is at the heart of the TQM approach.
Higher education and Deming's '14 Points'
The challenges that lie ahead for higher education areenonnous. Therefore it is absolutely essential that
higher education professionals are adequately preparedto confront those challenges. One of the key ways inwhich they can better prepare themselves to survive thecoming social, political and economic turbulence is to
study Deming's '14 points'2 and understand how theyapply to the collegiate environment. Toward that end,
what follows is a summary of his '14 points,'3 togetherwith an explanation of how each can be used to achievegreater accountability, quality and customer satisfaction.
(1) Create constancy of purpose
Everyone involved in the delivery of programmes andservices to the campus population must understand and
accept the fundamental importance of providing
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Application of the Deming philosophy to higher education
exceptional customer service at every availableopportunity. If acquiring a college education truly givessignificant advantages to the recipient, then thosebenefits should be obvious and desirable. Students
should attend college because it provides something thatwill help them succeed personally, socially, andvocationally. Yet this potential can be fully realized onlyif everyone in higher education shares the same visionand is pulling in the same direction. In other words,everyone involved in the educational process must be intotal agreement regarding institutional mission, ~
allocation of resources, how priorities will beestablished, and how goals and objectives will beaccomplished.
(2) Adopt a new philosophy
In short, what was acceptable as 'standard procedure' inthe not-too-distant past is now no longer appropriate.When college was seen as the only viable route forgetting ahead, the need to be sensitive and responsive toindividual desires, concerns, complaints, andrecommendations was not very acute. At mostinstitutions, the decision-making process was drivensolely by enrolments. If students wanted to acquire theknowledge and skills deemed essential for success,attendin~ college was really the only option. Studentswere taken seriously only when it was convenientand/or unavoidable. But now times have changed. In avery real sense, colleges and universities are much moredependent on students than students are dependent onthem. Customer satisfaction is no longer an abstractphilosophical construct; it is potentially the mostimportant consideration in virtually every decision. Thevery survival of higher education depends on its abilityto make this fundamental change.
(3) Cease dependence on inspection
Stated another way, colleges and universities mustbecome much more proactive in their approach to theprovision of programmes and services. Highereducation professionals have a well-deserved reputationfor being primarily reactive in how they respond toissues that affect the on-campus population. Instead oftaking the lead when problematic situations arise, theyhave often had to be coerced into some form of
cOITective action. When something 'bad' has happened,the typical response by many collegiate leaders has beento try to minimize the potential damage. In the businessworld, by contrast, the CUITentemphasis is on takingsteps to prevent 'bad' things from happening in the firstplace. Instead of simply responding to changingrealities, higher education professionals must assume amore dynamic role in deteITDining what those realities
will be at some future point and then developing
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programmes and services designed to meet thechallenges they represent.
(4) Minimize total cost
While money is certainly a key ingredient for thedevelopment and maintenance of a quality educationalsystem, it is naive to assume that quality is directlyproportional to the number of dollars spent. A tell-talecharacteristic of the reactionary mode of thinkinginvolves the 'band-aid' approach to dealing withproblems and other difficult situations. In an attempt todeal with the perceived short-term consequences of agiven situation, institutions typically spend three timesthe time, money, and effort needed to solve the problem- ie to take the steps necessary to resolve the problem
completely and thus prevent it from occurring again.Higher education professionals need to concentratemore on the long-term future of their programmes asopposed to expending inordinate amounts of time andresources dealing with relatively trivial matters.
(5) Improve constantly and forever
In today's market, it is never advisable to reach the
conclusion that a particular institution is 'good enough'.Continuous improvement must be a top priority on allfronts - froQ} the blackboard to the balance sheet. The
only way to remain responsive to the needs of a diverseand dynamic student population is to strive constantly toprovide better services without comparable increases incost. Higher education professionals must stay in touchwith the students they serve. They must monitor studentneeds continually and offer programmes and servicesthat meet those needs both now and in the future. The
over-riding goal of continual improvement mustdominate every discussion and permeate every agenda.Nothing should be undertaken in the academic arenathat does not add value to the overall enterprise.
(6) Institute training
Training is the key to the successful implementation ofTQM within the academic environment. Trainingfaculty and staff can be a very complicated, involvedand even frustrating process. But if done cOITectly, itcan also be one of the most rewarding dimensions ofwork in higher education. Sound training forms thebasis for a successful college or university. Whereasmany institutions do an exceptional job when it comesto the provision of training experiences, others simplydo not devote the time and effort needed to ensure that
the concepts presented within this article are given theattention they deserve. Far too often, training consists of(a) dispensing technical information, and (b) reacting tosituations as they develop. To be truly effective, trainingmust transcend these somewhat narrow parameters to
INDUSTRY & HIGHER EDUCATION February 2000
include the decision-making and problem-solving skillsnecessary to facilitate customer satisfaction.
(7) Institute supervision
Once faculty and staff have received training in thebasics ofTQM, it is imperative that upper-tieradministrators constantly reinforce their commitment toenhanced quality through every aspect of theirmanagement style. Most experts agree that, in thefuture, organizational hierarchies will be much morehorizontal than is currently the case at many collegesand universities. In short, there will be far fewer levelsbetween upper administration and students. One logicalresult of this collapsing of the structure will be theempowerment of those at the lowest levels; ie thoseclosest to the students. Such an arrangement necessarilymandates a management strategy foreign to manyhigher education professionals. Supervising empoweredemployees is substantially different from dictating whatis to be done centrally. Supervision of personnel withinthe context ofTQM is quite distinct from supervision oftask facilitation within a more traditional context.
(8) Drive outfear
No one can focus on doing the best job possible ifhe orshe lives in constant fear of the consequences ofperceived failure (such as being reprimanded or fired).Many higher education professionals, in the guise ofenhancing accountability, have instituted acomprehensive and endless array of evaluations: self-evaluations, student evaluations, peer evaluations,supervisor evaluations, etc. This is further evidenced bythe recent interest in implementing post-tenure reviewsat many institutions. The intended outcome of theseassessments may indeed be to foster and maintainhigher standards of commitment and quality. Yet themessage that is often received by faculty and staff is oneof implicit mistrust and intimidation. Good supervisorsmust learn to rely minimally on formalized evaluationschemes as a means of motivating staff and thusensuring that departmental goals and objectives areappropriately met.
(9) Break down barriers between departments
TQM requires a system-wide effort on the part of alldepartments. Higher education professionals who areobsessively preoccupied with who reports to whom,following the appropriate channels, and other issuesrelated to turf protection, often do considerable harm tothe institution by keeping the focus from where itshould be - on the delivery of quality programmes andservices. Being as responsive as possible to the needs ofstudents should be the only real concern. Ideas for
improvement should always be welcome; where they
INDUSTRY & IDGHER EDUCATION February 2000
Application of the Deming philosophy to higher education
originate from should be relatively inconsequential.Getting the job done efficiently in a humanistic manner,regardless of how the departmental lines appear on anorganizational chart, is all that really matters.
(JO) Eliminate unrealistic targets
Although it sounds good to proclaim that '100% studentsatisfaction is our goal', in reality this is impossible toachieve. For instance, holding faculty responsible forthe fact that not all of their students feel they are doingan acceptable job is unfair and unrealistic. Recognitionshould be given for effort, notjust results. If highereducation professionals establish goals and objectivesthat are inherently unattainable, they are not, as theymight think, motivating their staff members to be 'allthey can be'. Moreover, establishing recruitment ordevelopment goals that are unrealistic serves only todampen morale and thus needlessly impedeperformance. In the long run, this leads to highfrustration and accelerates bum-out.
(I I) Eliminate numerical quotas
An academic programme can be highly successful eventhough it enrols only relatively few students.The merefacts that the programme is available, and that a greatdeal of efWrt has gone into its design and construction,account for a lot more than is often realized. Similarly,if recognition is given only to those who are successfulin recruiting high numbers of students (or processinghigh numbers of forms), then an adversarial atmospherein the workplace is often created. Holding individualswith different abilities to the same performancestandards is inherently counterproductive. Faculty andstaff should be rewarded for performing at their ownindividual level of proficiency.
(I 2) Abolish management by objectives
On the surface, management by objectives (MBOs)seems like a good approach. MBOs can be helpful inestablishing priorities and clarifying the various jobfunctions that must be performed. But in the era ofTQM and its emphasis on continual improvement,MBOs are self-defeating in that they severely limit.creativity by inhibiting employees from proceedingbeyond the relatively narrow parameters they prescribe.Higher education professionals must be extremelyflexible in order to respond effectively to each student'sindividual needs. MBOs, by their very nature, limit thisflexibility and tend to precipitate meaningless,repetitious conformity.
(13) Institute a vigorousprogramme of re-education
Achieving the goals and objectivesof TQM will requireextensive re-orientation of the culture in higher
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Application of the Deming philosophy to higher education
education. Many of Deming's ideas are rather easy tocomprehend yet moderately difficult to put into practice.Changing the way people think can be an extremelydaunting task, as the proponents of multiculturalism arecurrently finding out. TQM requires an unwaveringdedication to the central concept of complete andconsistent customer satisfaction which can only beachieved through empowerment of all organizationalmembers. Such commitment implicitly denotes afundamental shift in the way many higher educationprofessionals view their role as proponents of studentlearning and development.
(14) The transfonnation is everybody's job
Instituting the Deming philosophy is not just theresponsibility of the upper administration at a college oruniversity, nor is it the primary concern of anyonegroup within the organization. It must be seen aseveryone's responsibility. A chief tenet ofTQMinvolves getting the decision-making authority as closeto the customer (the student), as possible. This meansthat everyone at the institution must have a clearunderstanding of the overall goals and objectives ofTQM, as well as how those goals and objectivestranslate into concrete action. In order to make this
connection, it is imperative that everyone works towardthe same end. TQM requires the full support ofeveryone within the organization; it will be adisappointing failure if it is only the dream of one ortwo people who have read a little about it and decided to'give TQM a try'.
Conclusion
Just like their counterparts in business and industry,higher education professionals stand to benefitsubstantially from the adoption of Deming's ideas.TQM is almost universally recognized as one of themost significant managerial innovations of the last 50years. Yet it remains a hazy concept to most collegiate
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faculty and staff. Higher education advocates would nodoubt be hard pressed to disagree with the assertion thatachieving and maintaining the highest quality standardspossible is of paramount importance. The problem isthat without more specific direction and elaboration,such statements are essentially meaningless. They addto the confusion rather than help alleviate it.
At the beginning of this new century, the challengesthat lie ahead for society have never been more dauntingor complex. Colleges and universitieswill no doubt playan increasingly significant role within the economic andcultural arenas during the next millennium. TQM offerstremendous advantages for higher education through itsprovision of new and innovativesolutions to bothexisting and anticipated problems. Deming offers aphilosophy and a framework in which the colleges anduniversities of tomorrow can not just survive, but prevail.
And even though it is currently enmeshed in amyriad of problems, higher education will continue tobe an exciting place to work throughout the nextcentury. Demographics and other factors will continueto precipitate both subtle and radical changes in thecharacteristics of the student population. As such,higher education professionals will constantly bechallenged to provide programmes and services that areresponsiv!fto the collective as well as the individualneeds of their clientele. As Deming so stronglyadvocates, it is imperative that we continue to stressstrict adherence to established-standards tempered withthe ever present need to be flexible.
Notes and references1W.Edwards Deming, Quality, Productivity, and Competitive
Position, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge,MA, 1982.2See op cit, Ref 1; and W. Edwards Deming, Out of the Crisis,2nd ed, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA,1986.
3For a more thorough explanation of Deming's 14 points, seeMary Walton, The Deming Management Method, Putnam, NewYork, 1986.
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